Apevia X-Telstar review

Some nice touches, but this case doesn't quite save itself from being a plain Jane

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Our Verdict

The basic design of this case may appeal to some, but others will find the price too much to ask for so little features

For

LED readout

Simple design

Fan speed controller

Against

Price seems a bit steep for such a basic case

Looks cheap

A plasticky case will always be a total turn-off for me, and the frontage of the Apevia X-Telstar is all about the black plastic. Thankfully, there are redeeming features, otherwise this review would make for all kinds of unpleasant reading for anyone connected with Apevia.

As I say, the plastic approach to the face of the case gives it a very cheap feel, as do the blue-gel, plastic tool-less drive bay and PCI brackets. Inside it's a pretty standard affair: classic grey metal.

It's simple, no-frills and goes for the standard top-mounted PSU design that's only recently being changed by the likes of Lian-Li, Antec and now Hiper. The no-frills approach is not necessarily a bad thing, except that this is a budget-feeling and budget-looking case, without PSU, for nearly £60.

No-frills case

What it does have is an LED readout on the front of the case displaying results from the internal sensors buried in the chassis. Alongside, there's a fan speed controller allowing you to monitor and adjust the ambient temperature inside.

The temperature sensor is a simple thing and if you wish you could attach it directly to the CPU cooler, GPU or HDs to monitor different components as you see fit. But then the readout is very small and cluttered with multi-coloured bars and lights making it difficult to get a sense of what's happening. Coupled with the fact that to read the digital display you need to be level with it, making reading when the PC is on the floor an effort to say the least.

The controller and display are a nice touch, but are not implemented well enough to make up for the cheap feel of the rest of the case. My PC components would hate me for making them live in somewhere so basic...